Never Alone Again
by DearestLizzie
Summary: This last chapter is slightly more mature than the others. Nothing smutty, just a little more intimate. So if you don't like scenes of Booth and Brennan kissing . . . you're hopeless;-D Deals with the aftermath of Booth's shooting-how it should have been.
1. Chapter 1

Bones stormed through the door to her apartment, apparently unaware that it had slammed into her bookshelves and sent several priceless artifacts flying across the room. She tore her jacket off and made a beeline for the beer she knew was tucked away in the back of her refrigerator. "Bastard," she muttered to herself as she opened a bottle. It was _his _beer. _His_ beer that she hadn't been able to get rid of when she thought he was dead. "Rotten lying son of a bitch," she hissed, draining half the bottle in one go. She grabbed the rest of the six-pack and threw herself down onto the overstuffed sofa in the front room.

Bones didn't stop drinking for the next twenty minutes, draining bottle after bottle. By the time Booth showed up, she was draped across her couch, staring moodily at a picture on her coffee table. He knocked hesitantly on her open front door and braced himself for her reaction when she finally looked over. "Um . . . hey, Bones," he said, his voice laden with uncertainty "You took off from the cemetery kind of fast. I didn't get a chance to talk to you after, you know . . . you decked me." Booth gingerly touched his discolored eye and grimaced, obviously trying for some sympathy.

His partner heaved herself into a sitting position and pointed an accusatory finger at him. "You lied to me," she managed, attempting to stand. "You were supposed to be _dead_ and you _lied_ to me." Booth reached out to steady her but quickly backed off when she glared at him through her disheveled curtain of her hair. "Bones, I'm so sorry. You were supposed to be notified. You were on my list! You have to know I would never put you through something like that!"

Bones went on without even acknowledging him. "Do you have any idea how I felt?" she asked rhetorically. "She was aiming at me and you jumped in front of me like some damn movie hero." She paced back and forth in front of Booth, weaving slightly with each pass, gesturing wildly with her half empty bottle of beer. "I tried so hard to stop the blood." Bones stopped abruptly, her eyes on Booth's chest, and she approached him on slightly unsteady legs. She pressed her hand to his shoulder, her eyes distant. "There was so much blood and I couldn't do anything about it. All I could do was sit there and beg you not to leave me." She shook her head, seemingly unaware of the tears streaming down her face. "You promised you'd never leave me," she almost whispered. Booth reached out a hand, hoping to consoler her, but her sadness abruptly turned to anger. "They told me you left me, Booth!" she raged, slamming her fist against him. "How could you make me think that? How could you let me believe that it was my fault?" Bones began sobbing in earnest, dropping the bottle and covering her face with her hands.

Tears in his own eyes, Booth reached out and gently drew his distraught partner into his arms, her face pressed against his shoulder, her arms wrapping around his waist. Though he was almost positive she couldn't hear him through her own grief, Booth murmured a constant stream of apologies and assurances into her ear. Countless minutes passed and, when Temperance's tears finally slowed, Booth led her back to the couch. Gently easing her into the softness of the cushions, he pulled back and smoothed her hair from her damp face. Her eyes drooped from a combination of alcohol and emotional exhaustion. Booth felt his heart clench. Touching a hand to her flushed cheek, he said, "Temperance, I'm going to explain everything. I want you to understand what happened. But first you need some rest. Alright?" She nodded almost absently and lowered herself to lie on the couch. Booth covered her with a light blanket and sat next to her, his hand clutched in hers. Within minutes she was asleep. Boot sighed as he watched his slumbering partner. The coming morning would be a difficult one, filled with accusations and explanations. But for tonight he could allow himself the almost unknown pleasure of watching his partner – his wonderful, beautiful, infuriating partner – in peace and simply be with her. Settling himself next to his Bones, Booth leaned over and gently pressed his lips to her forehead. "I'm here, Bones," he whispered. "And you'll never be alone again."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Sunlight filtered through the partially closed drapes to fall across the two figures on the couch. Bones grimaced, the bright light increasing the intensity of the pounding behind her still-closed eyes. God, what had happened last night? She moved to sit up but found she couldn't move. Opening her eyes, she glanced down and saw an arm lying heavily across her stomach. She followed the arm to its source and found herself practically touching noses with her partner. Her very awake partner who had apparently been watching her sleep. Booth saw her confusion give way to realization and sighed inwardly. When she stiffened and pulled away, he didn't try to hold her.

Bones stood and groaned softly, pressing her hand to her throbbing head. As she made her way to the kitchen she stumbled over empty beer bottles and cursed herself for her stupidity. As she was filling a glass with water, she heard Booth enter the kitchen behind her. "What are you still doing here, Booth?" she asked, not bothering to turn around. "I didn't want to leave you last night," he explained softly. "You had had a lot to drink and I worried about you getting sick." Bones laughed humorlessly. "It's a little late to worry about my welfare, isn't it, Booth? I mean, you were dead for two weeks. I could have been falling-down drunk every night and you wouldn't have known anything about it." Booth flinched and reached out a hand as if to touch her but thought better of it. "Bones, please, let me explain. I need for you to understand."

"I understand, Booth," she replied, her voice tight. "You were doing your job. No one could know. It's fine." She drained what was left of her water and set the glass gently in the sink. "It's fine, Booth," she repeated, still facing away from him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to take some aspirin and take a shower. I don't want to be late for work." Bones turned and walked past him, taking care not to brush against him, went into her bedroom and shut the door.

Booth stood there, momentarily unsure as to what he should do, then cursed softly and strode to the bedroom door. Hesitating briefly, he pushed open the door without bothering to knock and stepped inside. Brennan paused in removing her jewelry when she heard the bedroom door softly click shut, but still refused to look at him. "I want you to go, Booth. I feel terrible, I want a shower and I need to get to work." She finally raised her eyes to look at him and Booth almost flinched at the pain her could see there. "I'm fine, Booth. I'm good at compartmentalizing, remember?" Booth raised an eyebrow at this, and slowly shook his head. "You didn't seem very compartmentalized last night, Bones." A slight flush stained her cheeks and her lashes lowered over her eyes. "Yeah, well, last night was a little unusual, Booth. It's not every day that the person I . . . my best friend comes back from the dead. I think I can be forgiven for acting a little . . . odd."

Booth caught her arm before she could turn away again. "I'm not going anywhere, Bones. I know you're angry and hurt and really don't want to see me right now, but I'm not leaving until you give me a chance to explain." Bones tried to pull away, but Booth tightened his grip. "Please, Bones, you have to listen to me. I'm not going anywhere until you do." Bones glared up at him, her lips compressed. "Fine, Booth. I'm too tired right now to try and talk you out of your alpha male tendencies." She sat on the edge of the bed and waved her hand at him. "Explain away."

Booth smoothed his hands over the front of his dress uniform pants and took a deep breath. "I need to start at the beginning for you to understand so bear with me." At her nod, he started pacing in front of her. "I remember Pam shooting me and laying there looking up at you. I could see how upset you were and I tried to say something but I couldn't seem to catch my breath. The next thing I know I'm waking up in a hospital bed with tubes everywhere and feeling like every bone in my chest had been broken. Cullen was there. He told me I was going to be fine but that everyone had been notified that I had . . . died." He saw Bones flinch slightly at this but forced himself to continue. "The reason for the lie was to draw that suspect out of hiding. The only reason I agreed to it was because Davison – that's the guy," he clarified, "and I had a long history. The guy is scum. And he recently made threats against Parker." Brennan started at this news, her eyes shooting to his face. "Oh, my God," she whispered. "Booth, why didn't you tell me?" Booth shook his head. "I just found out in the hospital, Bones. Cullen told me. And from that point on I wasn't allowed to be in contact with anyone. Not even Parker. But Bones," he insisted, kneeling in front of her and grasping her hands, "I swear to God I thought they told you. I insisted to Cullen that you were to be notified. I _never_ would have put you through that. You have to believe me."

Bones searched Booth's eyes and saw his remorse, his anger at the situation and she felt her shoulders droop. "I know, Booth," she murmured. "I know." Suddenly restless, she rose from the bed and walked to her window, wrapping her arms around her waist. "I understand why it had to be the way it was." She turned to face him. "But that doesn't mean I can just forget how I felt. For the first time that I can remember, I couldn't just compartmentalize what happened. I don't know why. But this was different. I'm going to need some time. Can you understand that?" Booth nodded slowly, regret evident on his face. "Of course I understand, Bones." He walked over to her and gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "Whatever you need. Will it be OK if I still come by the Jeffersonian? I mean, even when we don't have a case?"

Bones smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I think I could handle that. I'll see you there, OK?" Booth nodded and leaned down to gently kiss her forehead. "See you in a bit, Bones."

Well after he left, well after she heard the front door close, Bones stared out the window, blinking back tears and trying to come to grips with everything that had happened within the last twenty-four hours. She felt her walls crumbling and didn't know what to do about it. All she did know was that her life was never going to be the same again.

AN: Thanks for reading! Should I keep going or is it OK the way it is? Please leave feedback!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Two Months Later**

"Hey, Bones, look alive! We have a case!"

Brennan glanced up from a veritable mountain of paperwork, a slight frown marring her features, and saw her partner standing in the doorway. Her frown gave way to a somewhat reluctant smile when she saw his infectious grin, his hands shoved deep into his pants pockets and yet another large belt buckle gleaming from his waist, this one proclaiming him to be "Sexy". Her smile quickly faded, however, when she realized what he had said.

"Booth, you're going to have to take Zach with you again. I can't leave. There's too much going on right now."

"Oh, come on, Bones," he wheedled, advancing into her office to stand before her desk. "The guy's probably been dead for the last four hundred years. He can wait another couple of hours."

Brennan tossed her pen down on her desk and leaned back in her chair. "Actually, Booth, he's been dead for seven months. We need to ID him to see if he was one of the leaders of Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. This one came straight from the Pentagon. So, you see, I really can't go." This last was said with a certain amount of smug satisfaction, which somewhat shocked Brennan and angered Booth.

"What's going on, Bones?" he demanded, angling his body towards her, his hands resting on the top of her desk. "You know you could leave this to Zach for a little while. Just like you could have left the lab for our last two cases. You keep avoiding me. I thought you were OK with me being around, that you still wanted to work with me. What's going on?"

Brennan wouldn't meet his intense gaze, appearing for all the world to be deeply engrossed in arranging papers on her desk. "Nothing is 'going on', Booth" she replied, a slight note of strain evident in her voice. "I just have other things going on right now. This is my primary job, you know," she insisted, sounding more than a little defensive. "You can't just expect me to drop everything and come running whenever you have a case."

"That's garbage, and you know it!" Booth exclaimed, shoving away from the desk. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, glaring at her bowed head. "Damn it, would you at least look at me?"

Brennan took a quiet breath and carefully schooled her features into a look of polite interest. "Really, Booth," she lightly protested. "I don't know what you're getting so upset about. From what I've seen and heard, Zach is doing a fine job out in the field. You have nothing to complain about."

"Bones, he's not you."

Booth thought Brennan might have flinched at his quiet statement, but if she did any expression on her face was too fleeting for him to be sure. Bones smiled thinly. "That's nice of you, Booth," she replied. "But we all have to learn to adapt to situations, to people and things changing or going away. She laughed lightly, returning her attention to her paperwork. "And its not forever. I'm sure my workload will ease up in a few weeks."

Booth stared at her for a moment, then pressed his fingers against the bridge of his nose. "I know I promised you time, Bones," he said quietly. "And I'm going to keep that promise. But it seems like things have gotten worse instead of better." He saw her tense in her chair and her eyes cool.

"Booth, like I said, I really don't have time for this right now." She gestured to the papers covering her desk. "In addition to identifying the body I have all these forms to fill out to verify everything for the Pentagon. I'll call Zach in and you two can go take care of . . . whatever it is you have going on."

Her partner lowered himself slowly into one of the chairs facing her desk and thrust his hands through his already-disheveled hair. "Maybe I was a idiot, but I really thought we'd be OK," he said quietly, almost as if he was talking to himself. "I mean, even after Sweets told me you . . ."

Bones' head shot up and she fixed her narrowed gaze on Booth, the latter still deep in thought. "What did you say?" she asked, her voice dangerously soft.

Booth looked at her, confusion evident on his face. "What?"

"What did you just say?"

Booth frowned, not understanding the anger he heard in her voice. "About what? Why are you so upset?"

"You said something about Sweets. What does he have to do with this?"

Booth closed his eyes, calling himself every kind of idiot. His silence seemed to increase Brennan's anger and she practically leapt from her chair. "You talked about me to Sweets?" she almost shouted, rounding the desk. "How dare you talk to someone about me behind my back! You have no right!"

Bones' anger seemed to release something in Booth, and he rose to confront her. "I have every right!" he shouted back. "Every time I've tried to talk to you over the last eight weeks, you've found a reason to either cut the conversation short or change the subject! What was I supposed to do?" Brennan tried to answer him but Booth cut her off. "I wanted to save our partnership! I wanted to get back the great working relationship and the friendship that we had! When I spoke to Sweets, I was desperate. I didn't know at the time that . . ." Here his voice broke and he shoved his fisted hands into his pants pockets. "I didn't know at the time that you didn't want the same thing."

Brennan spun away and stared out the glass wall of her office, angrily blinking back tears. When she had composed herself, she turned to look at her partner. "Booth, I don't think either one of us is in the right frame of mind to talk about this right now." Pivoting on her heel, she walked back to her desk, resuming her seat and picking up a pen.

"And when do you think _we_ might be ready, Bones?" Booth asked bitterly. He shook his head and moved towards the door, turning in the doorway to look back at her. "I told you I'd give you time. I meant it. But its obviously going to take you a lot longer to trust me again that I hoped. God knows I've done everything I can think of to fix this," he signed wearily.

"Don't worry," Booth assured her, suddenly caustic. "I won't be bothering you. And I won't be asking you to go into the field. When you finally decide to forgive me, Dr. Brennan, you come and let me know." With that he turned and walked out the door, his spine ramrod straight. He didn't look back.

AN: Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed my story. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it! Please keep the feedback coming!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Temperance sat slumped over her desk, her forehead resting on her upturned hand. This whole thing had gotten so out of control. Booth had barely been gone twenty minutes and she already felt his loss keenly.

"Sweetie?"

Brennan didn't raise her head. Her only acknowledgement of her best friend's presence was a slight tightening of her shoulders.

Angela stepped inside the office, gently closing the door behind her, and walked to stand in front of the desk. "Sweetie, I know you probably don't want to talk about it. It's why I didn't come in right away," she admitted. 'But you _have _to tell someone and since you've cut Booth off, that someone is me."

Bones' head shot up and she glared at Angela. "Don't you start," she snapped, rising from her chair to pace the length of her office. "You sound just like Booth. I don't know where you two get your ideas." Bones plopped down on her sofa, arms folded across her chest defensively. "I've been busy," she insisted, nodding her head for emphasis. "There's a lot going on right now."

"Brennan, you may be able to fool everyone else, but that doesn't work with me," Angela chided gently, sitting down next to her friend. "This goes way beyond work and you know it." Angela saw Bones try to protest but she cut her off with a firm shake of her head. "Don't, Brennan. It's not just avoiding cases. You don't hang around with him anymore. You haven't even been to Sid's for two months!" She leaned forward to look Bones right in the eye. "Now, what is the matter?"

Bones shook her head, her lips tightly compressed. "It's nothing," she insisted. "There isn't anything to talk about."

Angela stared at her, incredulous. "Nothing? Sweetie, a blind man could see that things aren't right! You haven't been on a case for two months, you send Zach out into the field instead of going yourself, you can barely look at Booth when he's here and there's no communication between the two of you when he's not." She glared at Brennan, an idea forming and beginning to bother her. "Bren, are you still not over the whole dead for two weeks thing?" Angela stood and moved in front of Temperance, the latter keeping her head bowed. "He did it for Parker, Brennan," Angela said, anger beginning to creep into her voice. "His _son_. And he thought you knew! How can you be so unforgiving? The guy would do anything for you and you still refuse to trust him!"

Angela was gearing up to continue but a muffled sob from Brennan put an abrupt end to that plan. "Sweetie?" She slowly knelt down and lightly placed her hands on Bones' knees.

Brennan raised her head and Angela was shocked at the tears streaming down her friend's face, at the misery etched on her features. "God, Bren, please talk to me," Angela begged, her own eyes beginning to well up.

"It's not that I don't trust Booth," Brennan began softly. "Of course I trust him. And I forgave him a long time ago."

"Then what is it?" Angela asked, moving to sit beside Bones, placing a comforting arm around her shoulders. "Why have you been so cold to him?"

Temperance suddenly shoved up from the sofa and stared blindly out her windows. "I have to be," she insisted quietly. "It's the only way to keep him safe."

"Brennan, what are you talking about?"

"Damn it, Angela, can't you understand?" Bones whirled to face her friend, hands clenched at her sides. "It was my fault. Booth almost died because of me." She covered her face with her hands. "It's not Booth I don't trust," she almost whispered. "It's me."

"OK, sweetie, you're going to have to explain it to me," Angela told her firmly. "How was it your fault? The woman was crazy. You know that."

Bones wiped at her wet cheeks impatiently. "He jumped in front of me," she replied hotly. "If it hadn't been for me, it never would have happened."

"Again, Bren, that Pam woman was insane. There is no logic to anything she did. And you're his friend and partner," she emphasized strongly. "Isn't that how it's supposed to work? The whole protecting each other thing?"

Temperance continued as if she hadn't heard her. "He's always doing things like that." She shook her head. "Damn alpha male tendencies," she said, almost to herself. "I'm a distraction. He wouldn't fee the same kind of obligation to someone else. I couldn't even help him after he was shot," she finished in disgust. "What kind of partner is that? No," she told Angela decisively, "I can't put Booth in that situation again. I felt completely helpless and I can't trust myself to go into dangerous situations if I can't protect him like he protects me."

Angela had been silent through all this, her confusion quickly giving way to sympathy and understanding. "OK, Brennan, I've listened to you and I get where you're coming from. But now you have to listen to me. Agreed?"

At Bones' silent nod, Angela stood and made Brennan look at her. "You say you don't want to be a distraction to Booth, right?" When Bones murmured her agreement, Angela continued. "What do you think you're being now?"

Bones eyes snapped to hers, shock registering on her face.

"What do you think is on his mind now?" Angela pressed. "A case or why his partner and _best friend_ has cut him off? Brennan, he thinks it's his fault!"

Bones looked as though she might be weakening, but her resolve returned swiftly. "He'll get over it," she declared stubbornly. "It's for the best."

Angela threw her hands in the air. "Damn it, Brennan, he's not going to just 'get over it'! For God's sake, the man is in love with you!"

Brennan stood there, mouth agape, staring at Angela as though she had sprouted a horn in her forehead. "What . . . are you talking about?" she asked slowly.

Angela's face softened. "Sweetie, it's so obvious," she replied gently. "How can you not see it? Everyone else does." At Brenna's continued expression of disbelief, she elaborated. "I'm willing to bet that there aren't a lot of 'business partners' who would show up at your house at two in the morning with comfort food. Or help get your father acquitted of murder. Or hide evidence that would implicate you in a murder investigation. Shall I go on?"

Brennan shook her head, still looking slightly dazed. "Ange, he would have done that for anyone." She paused, her eyes troubled. "Wouldn't he?"

Angela smiled, cocking her head to one side as she studied her friend. "Sweetie, you know him better than anyone," she replied. "What do you think?"

"I don't know what to think anymore."

"Mull it over for a while, sweetie," Angela insisted. "And while you do that, remember this: you're not helping Booth by cutting him out of your life or questioning his ability to make his own decisions. You two bring out the best in each other. Don't take that away from him. Or yourself." She stepped forward and hugged her friend tightly. "Be the brave, badass, ballsy Brennan I know and love." Angela pulled back and studied Bones' face. "He deserves an explanation, Brennan," she insisted. Gently squeezing Bones' arms, she left the office, closing the door gently behind her.

Moments later Bones charged out of the office, dragging her jacket on as she went. "Angela, do you know where they went?" she shouted, making a beeline for the elevators. Angela grinned widely. "Old Town Alexandria," she called back. "The old Etiwan Fertilizer warehouse!"

Brennan raced out of the lab, angrily stabbing at the elevator button. She had to talk to Booth. Stepping on the elevator, she acknowledged that Angela had been right. Regardless of what Angela said about how he felt, she did realize that Booth did deserve an explanation. She had handled the whole situation badly.

The elevator dinged softly as it opened its doors to the parking deck and Brennan swiftly made her way to her car. Practically peeling rubber, she sped out of the parking deck and into the day's intense sunshine. Fortunately DC traffic was uncharacteristically light and she made it to Old Town in a fraction of the usual time. Following the directions from her navigation system, she wound her way through the tight streets of the old section of Alexandria, finally finding the fertilizer warehouse.

As Brennan parked, she noticed Booth's black SUV resting at the other end of the parking lot. Good, she thought. He's still here. A split second later, the sound of a gunshot ripped through the air, followed closely by two more. Moments later, two figures emerged, one supporting the other. Blood stained the wounded man's white shirt, his head drooping towards his chest. Brennan sat, frozen, as she watched Zach struggle to keep him upright. "Oh, my God," Brennan whispered, her face draining of all color. "Booth."


	5. Author's Note

To all my wonderful readers – and I can't believe how many of you there are! – I'm so sorry I didn't get my next chapter posted today. I've had tests to grade, tests to read, and yearbooks to hand out. I just didn't get a chance but I will be updating as soon as I can. Thank you again for all the reviews and for boosting my confidence so much! I will post soon!


	6. Chapter 6

_As Brennan parked, she noticed Booth's black SUV resting at the other end of the parking lot. Good, she thought. He's still here. A split second later, the sound of a gunshot ripped through the air, followed closely by two more. Moments later, two figures emerged, one supporting the other. Blood stained the wounded man's white shirt, his head drooping towards his chest. Brennan sat, frozen, as she watched Zach struggle to keep him upright. "Oh, my God," Brennan whispered, her face draining of all color. "Booth."_

**Chapter 5**

Angela Montenegro and Jack Hodgins burst through the doors of the Emergency Room and dashed to the admitting desk. "Please, we were told Special Agent Seeley Booth was brought here," Jack gasped. "What happened?"

The nurse glanced up at them, her attention still largely on the computer screen in front of her. "Are you family?"

Jack shifted his feet restlessly. "Well, that would depend . . ." Angela quickly cut him off. "Of course we are," she insisted, glaring at Jack. "I'm his sister. Please, what happened to Boo . . . Seeley?"

The nurse quickly tapped on her keyboard and looked up at the two anxious visitors, sympathy briefly softening her features. "Mr. Booth was admitted about thirty minutes ago with a gunshot wound to his abdomen. The doctors are working on him now."

"Oh, God," Angela whispered, leaning into Jack's side. "I can't believe this is happening again." Suddenly her head snapped up and she looked at Hodgins, her eyes wide with concern. "Where is Brennan?" Her eyes darted around the crowded waiting room, passing over the groups of FBI agents in their dark suits, frantically trying to find her friend. Her hand clenched Jack's arm spasmodically. "Jack, look," she murmured, her voice choked with emotion.

Hodgins followed her gaze to a corner of the waiting room where two people sat, both covered in blood. Zach still looked stunned, his head resting on the wall behind his chair as he stared blankly into space. Bones sat rigidly in her seat, her hands clenched so tightly in her lap that her knuckles were bone-white.

Angela stifled a sob as she quickly made her way across the waiting room. "Brennan, Zach, are you OK?" she asked, pulling her friend into a brief, hard hug. "Were you hurt?" Angela closely inspected both still figures, searching for injuries.

"We're fine," Bones answered dully. "The blood is Booth's."

Angela flinched at the lifelessness of Brennan's voice and looked at Jack, silently pleading for his help. Hodgins nodded slightly and placed a gentle hand on Zach's shoulder. "So, man, can you tell us what happened? How did Booth get shot?"

Zach continued to study the ceiling, seemingly lost in contemplation, though when he began to speak his voice sounded completely normal. "Agent Booth and I arrived at the warehouse well before the other FBI agents. There were a few police officers outside but they were just there to secure the perimeter. They hadn't gone inside. We went in to inspect the remains alone and to secure the area before the others arrived to make sure they wouldn't inadvertently contaminate the evidence." Zach paused briefly, a thoughtful frown lining his brow. "He said Dr. Brennan would be . . . pissed, I think was the word he used, if other people were poking around her remains. He wanted to make sure no one got near the body."

Angela's eyes shot to Brennan's face in time to see her eyes clench shut and a grimace of pain contort her face. She grasped Brennan's clenched fists and squeezed comfortingly. "What happened next, Zach?" Angela asked, her eyes still on Bones' face.

"We found the body and I was getting ready to do my examination when Booth apparently heard something, because he whirled around and drew his gun. He shoved me down and the next thing I knew, there were bullets flying. When they stopped and I was able to look around, a man was lying in a pool of blood and Booth was injured. I could tell it was severe from the amount of blood he was losing so I got him outside. I knew the police could get help quickly. That's when Dr. Brennan arrived."

"Sweetie?" Angela said, gently prompting her to continue the story. For a moment Angela thought Brennan hadn't heard her or was simply going to ignore her. But then Bones took a ragged breath and, in an almost monotone voice, picked up where Zach left off.

"I had just parked my car when I heard the gunshots. Zach was almost carrying Booth out into the parking lot. By the time I made it to them, Booth had lost consciousness. The police officers were wonderful," she recalled. "They had an ambulance there within minutes." Bones looked down at her hands, forcing them to relax, revealing blood smeared across both palms and going up her forearms. Emotion started creeping into her voice. "I tried to stop the blood again, Angela," she said dazedly, sounding almost lost. "There was even more than last time. He was so pale when they loaded him into the ambulance." Her eyes frantically shot to the swinging doors that led to the treatment rooms of the ER. "Why don't they tell us anything?" she cried softly, lifting a shaking hand to cover her pale face.

"Sweetie, I'm sure they'll let us know what's going on as soon as they can," Angela soothed, sliding into the chair beside Brennan. "Everything will be OK. You can't loose hope. Booth is an incredibly strong man. He's been through so much that would have killed anyone else." She gave Brennan's shoulders a comforting squeeze. "Don't underestimate him."

"Angela, you don't know," Bones insisted. "The wound was terrible and he was losing so much blood. What will I do if . . ."

Bones never got to finish her thought. A doctor rushed through the swinging doors, his green scrubs liberally splattered with blood. After conferring with the nurse for a moment, his eyes fell on the small group that had gone suddenly silent. As he approached them, they all rose to face whatever news he had.

"I'm Dr. Stevenson," he informed the group. "I understand you're here for Agent Booth." At Angela's tense nod, he continued. "Is there a Dr. Brennan with you?"

"I'm Dr. Brennan," Bones answered, stepping forward. "What do you need?"

"Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth has listed you as the person authorized to make any necessary treatment decisions for him should he be incapacitated. I need you to sign consent forms allowing us to operate immediately."

Brennan stood in stunned silence for a moment and then visibly gathered herself. "Why do you need to operate?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"The bullet is still in Agent Booth's abdomen and it's in a delicate location. He was extremely fortunate that it missed his major organs but it's pressed against his abdominal aorta, which is the major artery in the abdomen, and the situation is very delicate. We've managed to stop the bleeding but if the bullet shifts, he could bleed out within minutes. We need to operate to remove the bullet and repair any internal damage that wasn't indicated on our scans."

"Oh, my God," Angela whispered, her eyes filling with tears. "What are his chances?"

Dr. Stevenson shook his head. "I'm not comfortable speculating right now," he replied. "I will say that Agent Booth is an incredibly strong man. Given his injuries and blood loss, I'm surprised he's still with us."

"Where are the papers?" Brennan asked, holding out a blood-stained hand. She took the clipboard the doctor extended to her and quickly signed the attached forms. When the doctor moved to take them, Brennan maintained her grip on the clipboard.

"I want a promise from you, Doctor," she told him, steel entering her voice.

"Dr. Brennan, I can't make any . . ."

Brennan ruthlessly cut him off. "You're going to make a promise to me, Doctor, or I'll shove my way into the operating room and stand over your shoulder, watching every move you make."

Realizing there was no reasoning with the woman, Dr. Stevenson nodded tightly. "What is it?"

"I want you to promise that, no matter what happens to him, I'll be able to see Booth as soon as he's out of surgery." When it looked as though he was going to question her, she ruthlessly cut him off. "_No matter what,_" she emphasized strongly.

"Dr. Brennan, I don't understand."

"You don't need to understand," Bones retorted. "Just make the promise."

Dr. Stevenson sighed and shrugged. "Of course you'll be able to see him, Dr. Brennan," he assured her. "I'll see to it personally. Now, if you'll excuse me, Agent Booth is being prepped for surgery. We have to move quickly."

Brennan watched the doctor disappear back through the swinging doors and her eyes suddenly welled with tears. "Angela," she whispered brokenly, her hand reaching out blindly.

Angela caught Bones' hand. "I'm here, Sweetie," she said, her own tears evident in her voice.

Bones continued to stare at the doors, wishing with all her heart that she could be with Booth. "What am I going to do?"

"You're going to sit here with us and wait for the doctor to tell us that Booth pulled through with flying colors," Angela answered, trying to inject confidence in her voice. "And, Sweetie," she added, her voice gaining strength. "I know you don't believe in God and Heaven and all of that, but if there was ever a time to have faith, this is it."


	7. Chapter 7

**AN:** Sorry it took so long to update. Real life can be such a pain:-) This chapter was a lot more difficult to write for some reason. I think my muse decided to take a vacation:-( Anyway, please leave lots of feedback. Thanks for reading!

**Chapter 6**

Temperance sat rigidly upright in her seat, her eyes fixed on the wide doorway of the surgical waiting room. How long had it been? One hour? Ten? She had no idea. Time seemed to have lost its meanings, all the passing minutes blurring together in one jumble of pain and worry. Brennan barely saw the almost-constant stream of FBI agents coming and going from the room and she scarcely acknowledged the murmured assurances of Angela, Hodgins and even Cullen. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew they were trying to help, to be kind, but she didn't want to hear it. All she wanted to hear was a doctor telling her that Booth was alright.

"Sweetie."

Brennan made no indication that she had heard her friend, and Angela's frown deepened. "Bren," she said more insistently, gently shaking her arm.

Temperance blinked and shifted her gaze to Angela's face. "What is it?"

"Brennan, sweetie, let's take a walk, OK?"

Bones was shaking her head before Angela even finished her suggestion. "I'm not leaving".

"Bren, please, we'll just walk in the hallway. I swear, we won't go far." Brennan's bloodless lips pressed together stubbornly but Angela continued to try to make her case. "Just for a minute. You need to get out of this room."

"Angela, no," Brennan insisted, her eyes returning to the doorway. "What if something happens and I'm not here? What if they bring an update? I'm not moving from this spot until they tell me he's alright." Her voice began to tremble slightly. "I'm not letting them fool me again," she almost whispered. "Whatever happens, I'm not moving until I can see him."

Angela felt her eyes fill with tears and she looked helplessly at her suffering friend. "God, Bren, I just wish there was something I could do."

Temperance's eyes shot back to Angela's face and she managed to smile. "Angela, you're here. You have no idea how much that helps." She closed her eyes and sighed deeply, exhausted. "I just wish they'd give us some news."

"I know, Sweetie," Angela said. "It seems like the most difficult thing in the world is just to wait. But you have to believe he's going to pull through. He's so strong and he has so much keeping him here."

Brennan nodded, a tender smile flitting across her face. "He loves Parker so much," she said softly. "I'm just glad Rebecca decided to keep him at his grandparents' until we know something for sure. It would be awful for him to have to go through this again for no reason."

"He does love Parker," Angela agreed. "But I meant you, too, Bren."

Bones' head whipped around to look at Angela, her eyes dropping away from the truth she saw in her friend's face. "Angela, now is not the time," she insisted.

"Brennan, now is very much the time," Angela shot back. "My God, look at where we are!" she exclaimed as she gestured at the packed waiting room. "What more is it going to take for you to acknowledge what's between the two of you?"

"Angela, please . . ."

"Sweetie, he brought you out of yourself. You're more alive around him and you know it. It's about time you admitted that he isn't just your partner. That man deserves to know how you feel." She looked into Bones' closed face and a note of begging entered her voice. "Just think about it."

"I don't have to think about it," Brennan insisted, her voice soft but surprisingly firm. "I know that what I feel for Booth is more than friendship. I've known for a long time."

"And?" Angela prompted gently. When no answer was forthcoming, she took Brennan's hand in hers. "Come on, Sweetie, you need to say it out loud."

Brennan seemed to struggle to form the words and when she finally did speak, her voice was choked. "I love him."

Angela threw her arms around Brennan, hugging her tightly and sending up a silent prayer of thanks. "Oh, Sweetie, why didn't you just tell him before?"

Temperance shook her head as it rested against Angela's shoulder. "Angela, don't you see? It was because of this, of all the times we could have ended up here." Tears seeped slowly from her closed eyes. "Everyone I love leaves," she whispered. "I didn't want to admit how I felt to anyone, not even to myself. I was so stupid. I thought if I pretended the feelings weren't there, nothing would happen to him. Even his coming back from the 'dead' seemed like a confirmation of that." Brennan raised her head from Angela's shoulder, her eyes bleak, and laughed bitterly. "So much for my being rational." Her eyes began to well up and her voice broke. "But when I saw him in the parking lot, unconscious and bleeding so terribly, I just couldn't deny it anymore." She began to weep in earnest and brought her hands up to cover her face. "I never wanted to feel this," she cried. "I thought if I just stayed away from that damn line, everything would be fine."

"You listen to me, Temperance Brennan," Angela said firmly, her hands gripping Brennan's shoulders. "You two have been through too much for everything to just end like this. You have to believe he's going to live. You have to stay positive and remember how stubborn Booth is. He's not ready to leave yet."

"Dr. Brennan?"

Bones looked over at the doorway and saw Dr. Stevenson standing there, his surgical scrubs bearing signs of the battle that had been fought, blood and sweat staining the dingy green material. She shot to her feet, her hand almost crushing Angela's in a tight grip, and suddenly all conversation I the waiting room ceased.

"Tell me," Brennan demanded, her voice tight. "Whatever it is, just please tell me."

"It was one of the most difficult procedures I've ever done," the surgeon admitted wearily, his exhaustion apparent to everyone. "There were a couple of times when I thought we were going to lose him. But," he added, a tired smile softening his features, "he's made it through surgery."

The room erupted in quiet cheers and Bones sagged against Angela. Dr. Stevenson held up a hand, asking for quiet. "The next twenty-four hours are going to be critical," he warned. "Agent Booth lost a lot of blood and there was significant damage from the bullet. But I'm quite confident that he'll pull through nicely."

Brennan went to the doctor, her hand extended. "Thank you," she said brokenly. "I can't tell you what this means."

Dr. Stevenson held her hand in both of his and smiled down at her. "You don't have to," he assured her gently. "Are you ready to see him?"

Temperance's eyes widened. "It would be alright?" she asked, her voice uncharacteristically unsure. "I thought patients couldn't have visitors in recovery."

"Generally they can't," Dr. Stevenson answered. "But I made a promise and I intend to keep it." He stepped out into the hallway and gestured for Brennan to follow. "Shall we go?"

Brennan quickly hugged Angela and followed the surgeon out of the waiting room. Within minutes she had donned scrubs and was being ushered into the crowded recovery room. All around were beeping machines, gurneys surrounded by attendants checking vital signs and monitoring recovery from anesthesia. Dr. Stevenson placed a hand on her arm and gently steered her to a bed at the far end of the room.

"Just a few minutes," he warned gently. Brennan nodded absently, barely noticing when he left. She approached Booth slowly and, sinking into a chair at the side of his bed, carefully took his hand in hers, holding it as if it might break.

"I'm here, Booth," she whispered, pressing a soft kiss to the back of his hand, missing the flicker of his eyelashes. "I love you so much."

**AN:** I have to admit, I'm kind of feeling a wrap up chapter coming on. What do you think? FEEDBACK!! :-D


	8. Chapter 8

AN: I am so, so sorry it has taken me this long to update. My brother got married and everything leading up to it was crazy, what with plans, and dinners, and showers. And to top it all off, my muse is back and we've been having a knock down drag out about how many chapters should be in this story. She wanted a wrap up chapter, I wanted a few more. I won:-) I hope it was worth the wait . . . and the bruising;-) Please, please, please review! Thanks for reading!

**Chapter 7**

"Bren, a body was just delivered. You know, the one found at that new building site outside of Gettysburg, and Zach was . . ."

"Sorry, Angela," Bones responded, grabbing up her jacket and heading for the door of her office. "Booth is being moved from Intensive Care today and I promised I'd take Parker to the hospital."

"Oh, that's right," Angela exclaimed, following Brennan through the lab. "Parker still hasn't seen Booth."

"No, and I think Rebecca was right about that," Brennan acknowledged as she dug through her bag for her car keys. "Booth looked so bad for a while, it would have been an awful shock for a little boy."

"Booth must be thrilled," Angela said, smiling broadly as Brennan hit the elevator call button. "Out of the ICU after a week, he's finally seeing Parker, and best of all, you're in love with him." She sighed deeply. "You know, you still haven't told me what he did when you finally said those three little words."

Brennan suddenly seemed completely absorbed in watching the elevator's descent on the lit panel above the chrome double doors. Angela's eyes narrowed.

"Bren, you did tell him, didn't you?"

"Of course I did," Bones insisted, her eyes never straying from the elevator.

Silence met this announcement and Bones dared to glance over at her best friend, only to find a look of skepticism on Angela's face. "And when was that?" she demanded.

Brennan shifted her weight from foot to foot, cursing whatever was holding up the elevator. "When I saw him in recovery," she muttered.

Angela buried her face in her hands, her groan of frustration echoing down the hall. "OK, Sweetie, let me make this very clear," she said, speaking slowly as though to a child. "If a man is unconscious, IT DOESN'T COUNT!"

"Really, Angela, there's no need to raise your voice."

"Well, honestly, Brennan!" her disgruntled friend exclaimed. "Here I thought it had all been taken care of and I could just sit back and enjoy the romance. And then I find out he doesn't even know! Booth has been conscious for almost a whole week, Brennan. I know he was in ICU but his ears were working just fine. What are you waiting for?"

Before Bones could come up with a response, the elevator dinged softly and the doors slid open. Sighing in relief, Bones stepped into the welcoming solitude of the elevator and pressed the button for the parking deck. As the doors began to close Angela called out, "Don't be a chicken, Brennan!"

A frown furrowing her brow, Brennan responded just as the doors closed, "I don't know what that means."

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* * *

Brennan waited outside the tidy colonial house, her thoughts still spinning around what Angela had said to her about telling Booth how she felt. Before she could come to any sort of conclusion, the door swung open and a little whirling dervish threw himself against her stomach.

"Dr. Bones, Dr. Bones, you're here!"

Bones laughed and leaned down to return the embrace. "Hi, Parker. Are you ready to go?"

"He's been ready for the last two hours," Rebecca informed her wryly, coming up behind her son, an overnight case gripped in her hand. "I can't thank you enough for taking Parker to see Seeley," she said sincerely. "Normally I would take him myself but I got an emergency call from Philadelphia and, since Seeley's doing so much better, I felt like I could go."

"It's no problem, Rebecca," Brennan assured her. "I'm happy to do it and I was going up to the hospital anyway. What time does the babysitter get here?"

Rebecca glanced at her watch, her mind already on the work she needed to get done on her flight. "Sarah should be here in two hours, two and a half at the most. She has a key so you don't have to worry about getting back before her. As long as Parker is home for dinner, everything should be fine."

Temperance nodded and smiled down at Parker. "Ready to go?"

"You bet!" he shouted, darting down the walkway to Brennan's car. Rebecca and Temperance followed and, while Rebecca quickly hugged and kissed her son goodbye, Bones started up the car.

"Thanks again, Dr. Brennan," Rebecca said as she strapped Parker into the back seat. "See you later, sweetheart," she said to her son. "Tell Daddy I said hi."

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Brennan breezed through the automatic doors of the hospital, an excited Parker clutching her hand in one of his while he held a slightly drooping bouquet of wild flowers in the other.

"Do you really think Daddy will like the flowers, Dr. Bones?" he asked for what must have been the hundredth time, concern evident on his face.

"Parker, he'll love them because you brought them," Bones assured him, gently squeezing his hand as they stepped onto the elevator. "Your Daddy is going to be so happy to see you."

"Dr. Bones, did Daddy almost die again?"

Brennan looked down at her little companion, her propensity for total honesty at odds with her sudden desire to keep anything from hurting Booth's son. "Why do you think that, Parker?" she asked carefully.

"Mommy was crying sometimes when she thought I wasn't looking and Daddy never called me." His lower lip began to tremble. "He always calls to say goodnight and when I asked Mommy what was wrong, she said Daddy had been hurt and I might not talk to him for a while. But then she started crying again."

The elevator dinged softly as the doors opened and Brennan led Parker into the corridor. Kneeling, she held his hands gently in her own. "Your Daddy was hurt very badly," she admitted gently. "But we all knew that he would be alright because of how much he loves you. You have to remember that when you see him, OK?"

"Why?"

"Because he is still a little . . . sore," Brennan replied, trying to use words that wouldn't frighten a small child. "And he still has bandages, so you have to be careful when you hug him."

"Are you careful when you hug him, too?" Parker asked innocently.

Bones felt a flush creep up her neck. "Yes, very careful," she told him solemnly. "In fact, I usually just shake his hand."

"But why?" Parked asked, his confusion plain. "I heard Mommy telling Grandma that you had the hots for Daddy." Parker ignored Brennan's shocked gasp and blithely continued. "Emmy White said that means being in love. Don't you love my Daddy, Dr. Bones?"

Brennan felt a cold sweat break out all over her body and her eyes seemed to look everywhere but at Parker's innocently inquiring face. Oh, God, what was she supposed to say?

"Dr. Bones?"

Brennan forced her eyes back to Parker and managed a smile. "Yes, of course I love your Daddy," she replied. "Everyone loves him," she emphasized.

"Then you can hug him when we go in," Parker pronounced decisively. "And we'll both be very careful."

Bones managed to make her voice sound cheerful even as she felt her stomach drop somewhere around her toes. "Sounds good, Parker. Let's go see your dad."

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"Daddy, Daddy, I'm here!"

Booth broke off his conversation with Director Cullen and turned toward the door, his face lighting up at the sight of his son. "Hey, bud, get over here!"

Parker dashed to the bed and raised his arms, trying to reach his father. Bones came up behind him and lifted him so he could gently wrap his arms around Booth's neck.

"I missed you, Daddy," he said, pressing his cheek tightly against Booth's.

"I missed you, too, bud," Booth whispered, his eyes suspiciously bright. He looked up at Brennan and smiled. "Thank you, Temperance," he said softly, his gratitude evident in each word.

Brennan returned his smile, determined not to let him see how affected she was by his use of her first name.

Parker pulled back and carefully studied his father. "Are you alright now, Daddy?" he asked, taking in the bandages on Booth's abdomen and the IV in his hand. "I didn't hurt you, did I? Dr. Bones said I had to be real careful."

"Yeah, I'm doing much better, bud," Booth replied, ruffling his son's hair. "In fact, after that hug, I'm almost good as new."

"Maybe when Dr. Bones gives you her hug, you'll be all better," Parker suggested brightly.

Brennan barely heard Cullen's muffled laughter turn to a discreet cough as her eyes met Booth's. She could feel herself blushing – damn it, she never blushed! – as one of Booth's eyebrows quirked up and his lips curved into a slow smile. "Dr. Bones' hug?" he repeated, his gaze still on Brennan's flushed face.

"Yep. Cause she's supposed to give you a hug since she has the hots for you."

Brennan closed her eyes in complete humiliation while Cullen tried manfully to keep himself from roaring with laughter.

"I'm sorry, Booth, but apparently Parker heard his mother talking and he just assumed . ."

Bones' frantic explanation was cut off by Parker's little voice. "But Dr. Bones, when I said that Emmy White said having the hots meant being in love you said you love Daddy, too." He looked up at Bones, confusion clouding his eyes. "Didn't you mean it? Don't you love Daddy?"

That did it. A man could only take so much. Cullen rose swiftly and gently lifted Parker from Booth's bed and Brennan's slack grip. "OK, so we're going to go get some ice cream in the cafeteria," he explained as he backed out of the room, a delighted Parker in his arms. "_Lots_ of ice cream," he emphasized. "We'll be a while."

As the two of them disappeared through the door, Brennan kept hoping a hole would open and swallow her. Damn it, when had she become so irrational!

"So," Booth said, drawing out the word. "Sounds like you had a very interesting talk with Parker."

Brennan squared her shoulders, forced her features into an expression of composure, and turned to face Booth. "You know how children are, Booth," she replied calmly, allowing her lips to curve slightly. "They can't imagine anyone not adoring their parents. So when he asked, of course I gave him the answer he wanted to hear."

"So you don't love me."

"No."

"Not at all?"

Bones squirmed slightly under his intense gaze and began to fiddle with the cuff of her jacket. "Of course I care about you as a friend," she replied stiffly.

"Just as a friend?"

"Booth, what is wrong with you?" Brennan exploded, spinning away to pace at the foot of his bed. "These questions are bizarre."

Booth relaxed against his pillows, his face serious though his eyes twinkled. "Jeez, Bones, relax. I'm just trying to clarify something. I have to admit, I'm pretty confused right now."

"What are you confused about?" Bones asked impatiently, her hands on her hips.

"When I was in the recovery room, I was drifting in and out. I wasn't sure where I was or what was going on. But I do remember one thing very clearly." He paused and looked at Brennan's suddenly bloodless face and raised his eyebrows. "Want to know what it was?"

When no response from Bones seemed to be forthcoming, he shrugged and said, "I remember you saying you love me. So you can see where I might be confused."

Moments of silence passed, Brennan attempting to collect her thoughts, trying to say _something_, while Booth just watched her expectantly.

"Booth, I . . . uh . . .I . . ." Brennan stuttered, for once at a complete loss for words.

"Love me," Booth finished brightly. "And here's the thing, Bones," he continued, his face suddenly serious, his voice deep with emotion. "I promised myself if I pulled through this, we were going to have it out." Booth leaned forward, his eyes intent. "You love me, Bones, and you can't take it back. And I love you. Very much."

Bones felt her knees turn to jelly and she held on to the foot of Booth's bed to stay upright, her knuckles showing white from the effort.

"So," Booth continued firmly. "What are we going to do about it."

AN: You know what to do. Click that wonderful little button and tell me what you think. I need fuel!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 8**

Temperance Brennan felt like the world had just shifted under her feet and she was scrambling to regain her balance. She just stood there, seemingly unable to move, staring at Booth while he lay propped up against his pillows, his arms folded across his chest and a look of rueful amusement on his face.

"Uh, kind of hoping for a response here, Bones."

"A response?" she repeated somewhat dazedly. "To what?"

Booth sighed deeply. "To what I just said."

That seemed to snap Bones out of her fog and her eyes narrowed. "Why didn't you tell me you heard me?"

Booth blinked in surprise. "What?" he asked incredulously, running a hand through his hair. "_This_ is what you want to talk about right now?"

"Yes," she replied stiffly, folding her arms defensively across her breasts. "You've known for a week about . . . that and never said a word! Why?"

"Oh, for God's sake," Booth muttered. He looked at her, her rigid posture and frown evidence of her anger but he also saw fear in her eyes and that, more than anything else, softened his voice.

"Temperance, I didn't say anything because I wanted you to tell me yourself, on your own, when you knew I could hear you. I was going to give you a little more time but Parker really moved things along." Booth tried to suppress a sudden grin at the memory and failed miserably but when she didn't respond, he grew serious again. "Why didn't you say something?"

She broke eye contact and for a moment it seemed like she wasn't going to answer him, but then, "I was afraid," she responded softly, still not looking at him.

"Of what? Me?" Booth asked, shocked.

Bones shrugged and looked at him briefly before becoming engrossed in the pattern of the blanket on the bed. "You were the one that came up with the line, remember? I didn't want to risk our partnership if you didn't feel the same way."

"OK, I can understand that," Booth acknowledged after a thoughtful silence. "But after everything that's happened in the last week, I was hoping that the line wasn't important anymore. You seemed to have forgotten it in the recovery room."

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, he wished he could call them back. Brennan's eyes, suddenly bright with tears, shot to his and Booth was momentarily shocked at the pain he saw in them.

"I thought you were dying, Booth," Bones said, her voice ragged. "You don't know what I went through that day. I was half out of my mind at the possibility that I could lose you. I had to say it to you, even if it was only that once." She seemed insensible to the tears running down her cheeks as she continued. "I wasn't thinking about any damn lines, Seeley. All I could think of was how much blood you had lost, blood that was still all over my hands, and how I had signed the papers for a surgery that might have killed you."

Booth tried to speak but Brennan shook her head, trying to regain control of her emotions. When she had calmed down, she brushed the tears off her face and took a deep breath. "When you woke up and we knew you were going to be alright, I was so happy," she admitted softly. "And then I started to wonder if maybe it had been for the best that you hadn't heard me. If you didn't feel the same way . . ." Her voice trailed off for a moment, her eyes distant, but she shook herself out of it and kept going. "Well, I decided it was better to maintain what we had, to stay just your partner and your friend, rather than to risk losing you completely." She looked at him steadily, not knowing her heart was in her eyes. "I couldn't have stood that."

Moments passed before Booth managed to breathe again and when he spoke his voice was hoarse with emotion. "I'm sorry, Temperance," he said, his face soft with understanding. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that. If our positions had been reversed . . ." He closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed heavily, sick at the thought. "I would have lost my mind. But don't you see?" Booth asked, his voice gaining strength as he spoke. "We've been given a second chance. And you don't have to be afraid that you're going to lose me if I know how you feel because I feel the same way. I love you so much," he told her sincerely, his eyes begging her to believe him. "I'm not going to go through the rest of my life regretting that I never told you because of some damn line I made up when I was too much a coward to admit how I felt." She tried to look away but his eyes caught hers and held. "I love you, Temperance. I'll keep telling you every hour of every day for the rest of our lives if that's how often you need to hear it."

Tears shimmered in Brennan's eyes but she couldn't seem to let go of all her misgivings, all of her fears. "But what if it doesn't work, Booth?" she asked quietly. "What if it ends after a few months and we can't go back to the way things were. We could lose each other for good. Would it have been worth it?"

"You listen to me, Temperance Brennan," Booth commanded. "Nothing in this world is going to change what I feel for you or keep us apart ever again. I've waited too long to find you and I'm not going to let a bunch of 'what ifs' keep me away from the woman I've been looking for my whole life. I love you, you love me, we're together. And there's going to be no more debate about it." He glared at her as if daring her to argue with him. "Now I have just one more question."

Bones waited for him to continue but when he just sat there, looking at her so sternly, she couldn't help but smile. "And what is that?" she finally asked, feeling hope for the first time in so long.

"What the hell are you still doing all the way over there?"

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Director Cullen was feeling distinctly nauseous. He had kept up with Parker through the first bowl of ice cream, had done reasonably well with the second, but by the third he had developed a dull pounding behind his eyes and a churning in his stomach. He studiously avoided looking at his reflection in the various windows and chrome elevator doors on the way back to Booth's hospital room for fear he skin was genuinely green. How on earth did a child that size eat so much sugar and still feel well enough not just to skip along halls but to _sing_, for God's sake! Cullen shook his head, spent and defeated, and led Parker onto the waiting elevator. Whatever Booth and his squint had to say to each other, they'd better be done by now because _he_ was going home.

"D'ector Cullen," Parker said cheerfully, tugging on his newest friend's arm. "We've been gone an awfully long time, haven't we?"

"Yes, Parker, we have," Cullen replied, trying to inject some cheer into his voice. "You sure can pack away the ice cream."

"Yup," Parker agreed cheerfully, rocking back and forth on his heels. "Daddy says I can eat him under the table. Is that a good thing?"

"I suppose it is," Cullen admitted carefully. "I guess it depends on how you look at it."

"D'ector Cullen?"

"Yes, Parker."

"What do you think Daddy and Bones have been up to while we were having our ice cream?"

Cullen cleared his throat, his mind racing to find an answer as they exited the elevator and headed for Booth's room. "Uh, well, I'm sure they're just talking about casework and investigations and . . ." He broke off abruptly when he stuck his head into the hospital room, then whirled around and kept Parker out in the hall.

"Say, Parker, what do you say we go look at the babies down in the nursery?" he asked, his voice sounding strained under the excitement. "Your dad and Dr. Bones still seem to be . . . investigating."

**AN:** This chapter was just dying to get out. I hope it's OK. The story isn't quite done yet so please click on the little blue button and validate me. No, seriously, do it;-)


	10. Chapter 10

**AN:** This chapter is a little more mature. Nothing smutty, just a little . . . intimate;-) Thought I'd let you know.

**Chapter 9**

Booth strode into the lab, hands stuffed into his pockets and an almost goofy smile on his face. Life was good, he decided as he approached Bones' office. He was fully recovered, back on the job, Rebecca was letting him see Parker more often and, best of all, he had his Bones.

He reached the doorway to Brennan's office and stopped to lean against the doorpost, his eyes simultaneously caressing and devouring her form. She was standing with her back to him, one hand propped on her hip as she studied an x-ray held up to the light. He could almost hear the wheels in her mind working. Booth crept up behind her, his shoes making no sound on the hardwood floor and, just as she was about to turn around, slid his arms around her trim waist.

Brennan tensed for a moment but then realized who it was and relaxed against him. "Hey," she murmured as her hands came up to cover his. "Do we have a case?"

"Nope," came the soft reply, his lips trailing over her neck. "I thought I'd come by and see if I could talk you into an early dinner."

"Now?" Bones asked incredulously. "Booth, it's 2:00!"

"What's your point?" he responded silkily, finding a particularly sensitive spot right beneath her ear and nipping gently.

Temperance bit back a groan as her eyes slid shut and her head fell back against his should, giving him greater access.

"You gonna answer, baby?"

Brennan managed to pull herself out of a fog of pleasure long enough to respond with an almost inaudible, "Don't call me 'baby'."

Booth allowed himself a brief grin at her obviously insincere and distracted response before his teeth found her earlobe. "About lunch," he repeated. "You still think it's too early?"

Bones felt her knees buckle when one of his straying hands crept under her blouse and began caressing her bare stomach. "Oh, to hell with it," she groaned, spinning around in his arms and frantically seeking his mouth with her own. The two were soon lost in a passionate embrace, oblivious to everyone and everything else.

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"So, how long do you think it will take for them to realize we can see them?"

Angela glanced over at her grinning fiancé, then turned a calculating eye back to the show going on in Brennan's office. "I don't know," she mused. "The relationship is still new and they have three years of pent-up sexual tension to deal with." She looked back at Jack, a gleam of laughter in her eyes. "I say they don't notice us until we say something."

"I'm going have to disagree," Jack replied. "They're going to have to come up for air eventually and one of them is bound to notice." He chuckled gleefully. "_That_ ought to be good."

"I don't understand your preoccupation with their physical relationship," Zach informed them as he made his way to the exam area. "It's a purely natural reaction between two healthy mammals who have a mutual interest in fulfilling their mutual sexual . . ."

"Thank you, Zach!" Angela interrupted loudly. "As informative as I'm sure that was, you're kind of sucking the romance out of the whole situation."

"Romance has nothing to do with it," Zach responded calmly. "They are both merely reacting to millions of years of programmed behavior aimed at perpetuating the species." With that, he turned on his heel and was immediately re-immersed in his case.

Angela rolled her eyes at Hodgins. "What a mood killer!" she muttered, though she couldn't help the indulgent smile that flickered across her face.

"So," Jack said, rubbing his hands together. "What do you we say we make this interesting?"

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Temperance was quickly losing control and she knew it. With every movement of his lips on hers, every sigh, every touch, she was becoming more lost in him.

"Booth!" she gasped, wrenching her mouth from his only to groan as they immediately fastened on her throat. "We can't do this. We're in my office!"

"Then let's get out of here," he insisted, his breath coming in harsh pants. "It's Friday," he reasoned, pressing almost frantic kisses across her face. "We can leave early on a Friday." Even then he felt her hesitate and slid a caressing hand to her backside, pressing her against himself. "Come on, baby," he whispered seductively against her ear, his tongue tracing the delicate outer shell.

Brennan's hands clenched, crushing his jacket between her fingers. She tore herself from him and grabbed her keys. "Let's go."

Booth grabbed Bones' hand and practically ran from the room, only to halt abruptly at the very loud cough that came somewhere to their left.

"Leaving early, Bren?" Angela asked sweetly. "That's unlike you. Is everything OK?"

Trying to look as nonchalant as possible with tousled hair and kiss-swollen lips, Bones turned and smiled – or at least attempted to smile – at her friend. "Yes, we have some . . . leads that need fleshing out before we go to dinner."

"Must be serious," Angela observed solemnly. "You were practically running out the door."

"Yeah, you know how it is," Booth replied, tugging Brennan along as he started moving towards the bank of elevators. "Gotta strike while the iron is hot."

"From the looks of things, the iron is practically melting," Jack muttered, trying his best not to laugh and getting an elbow in the side from Angela for his troubles.

"Well, you go out there and kick butt, guys," Angela encouraged. "Oh, and Booth!" she called as they began to speed away. "You might want to get that lipstick off your mouth. Not too intimidating. You know. For those criminals."

Rather than be embarrassed, Booth grinned and hauled Brennan to him, pressed a firm kiss to her lips and waved jauntily. "See you Monday!"

He and Brennan were laughing as they stepped onto the elevator and Angela couldn't help but sigh when she saw them come together again as the doors closed, arms wrapped around each other and gazing deeply into each other's eyes.

"Jack," she said wistfully. "They're so beautiful together." She slipped her hand through the crook of his arm and squeezed. "And you know what?"

"What?" Jack asked tenderly, fully expecting a comment on her happiness in their relationship.

Angela looked deeply into his eyes and smiled. "I win."

**AN:** And that's all she wrote, at least for this story. I do have another one I'm working on so hopefully I'll be posting again soon. Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed my story. I so appreciate all of your support and kind words. Thank you, thank you, thank you:-D Now hit that little blue button for me one more time!


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